News Archive

December 2018

‘Tis the season to be jolly – and therefore also the perfect time for us to introduce the ANU Film Group’s new seasonal programmes.

As you already know, beginning in 2019, the ANU Film Group will be screening films all year round. To better align with this extended screening schedule – and to allow us to select the latest and greatest films for you – we will be screening four programmes a year, instead of the usual two semester programmes.

These will align with the four seasons (Autumn, Winter, Spring, Summer) with approximately 50 films screening per season.

The cost of a membership for a single season in 2019 will be $30, while the cost for an Annual membership – equivalent to four seasons – will be $90. Because our screenings will continue all year round, you will be able to purchase Annual memberships at any time throughout the year– which will include the current season, as well as three more after that.

It’s one of a number of changes coming to the ANU Film Group next year that we hope will make joining up easier and result in a better experience for our members. Stay tuned for more to come!

And don’t forget – as a token of our appreciation for your ongoing support, we are offering Annual memberships for 2019 for pre-purchase at just $70 until December 31, 2018. So make sure you go to www.anufg.org.au/join now to save!

Whether you consider that to be light at the end of the tunnel, or a long 371 days until next year’s jolly holiday, we can all agree that an ANU Film Group membership is a terrific, no-fuss Christmas gift that keeps on giving.

Purchase yours before the end of the week and you should receive your membership certificate just in time for Christmas (subject to successful receipt of funds – bank transfers can take 2-3 working days to reach us).

So don’t wait any longer and head to www.anufg.org.au/join to sign up for yourself and everyone you know. A full year of movies is still only $70 until the end of the year!

It’s hard to believe that it’s been over a week since we ended screenings for 2018 and bid farewell to the Coombs Theatre. Unfortunately, the theatre is not the only thing we’re saying goodbye to when we make the move to our new home next year.

It is with great sadness that we must announce that our canteen – run by the wonderful people at the Rotary Club of Woden Daybreak – will not be operating in 2019.

Initially set up in 2004 to raise funds for charity while providing a much-needed service to our members, the canteen has grown to become as much as part of the ANU Film Group experience as everything else. For many members, a visit to canteen for a bag of popcorn, a hot dog, a cup of tea or some of those ever-popular red frogs is a must every Thursday, Friday and Saturday night. On the odd occasion, visiting the canteen could even prove better than the film itself!

While cheap snacks may have been a draw for some, for many it was the Rotary Club’s volunteers that likely brought them back time and time again. Popcorn can be bought anywhere, but it was the people – always smiling, friendly and up for a chat – that made the canteen something special.

For all this and more, the ANU Film Group wishes to express our sincerest thanks to one person in particular: Robyn Rae. For the past 13 years, the lovely Robyn has devoted so much of her own time to the running of the canteen – staffing the roster, replenishing stock and, on most nights, working behind the counter herself. Though officially retired, running the canteen was almost a full-time job in itself for Robyn and we are forever grateful for everything she has done for the Group and its members.

We realise that this will come as sad news for many of you, as it certainly has for us and the Rotary Club. Despite our best efforts over the past year, we have simply been unable to find a viable space in the new building – or any alternative option – suitable for the canteen to continue running in its current form.

The Kambri precinct will still feature dozens of other food and drink outlets in the vicinity of the new cinema, so there will be no shortage of options for a bite to eat before or after screenings. And with construction nearing completion in early 2019, we continue to remain hopeful that we may find a way for the ANUFG to continue supporting the Rotary Club going forward.

In the meantime, if you would like to send a message of thanks to Robyn and the other volunteers, or would just like to find out more about what the Rotary Club of Woden Daybreak are doing in the community, please pay a visit to their website at www.rotaryclubofwodendaybreak.com.

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A MESSAGE FROM ROBYN
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The Rotary Club of Woden Daybreak took on the canteen for the ANUFG over 15 years ago, when our charter president saw it as an opportunity to connect with the community and raise money for worthwhile causes. I have been lucky to manage it for over 13 years, meeting many interesting people and being able to help some along the way by just talking with them.

We were so lucky to gain a Rotary member too from just being there at the right time! I have also seen many movies that I would not have considered watching, some more than others!

My thanks to all those that chose to come for a chat or a cuppa or dinner, I am already missing you all.

November 2018

Thank you to all who came along last night to commemorate the end of our time in the Coombs Theatre. We had a blast hosting one final event there, and we hope you had a good time too!

At the farewell event, we celebrated 50 years of the ANU Film Group at the Coombs Theatre, but also looked ahead to what’s in store for 2019.

As some of you may already know, we will be relocating to a new cinema in the ANU’s Kambri precinct in 2019. Kambri is a new development in the heart of campus that will also house restaurants, shops, fast food outlets, a two-storey bookstore, student residences, a gym, a pool, a medical centre, and much more. You can find out more about it by clicking HERE.

The cinema itself will seat up to 300 people and has been purpose-built from the ground up as a modern cinema – with plush seats, accessible entry, curtains and cinema-grade projection and sound equipment. We’re very excited with what we’ve seen so far and look forward to being able to share more with you soon.

And yet, while our venue and location will be new and exciting, everything you know and love about the ANU Film Group will remain. We’ll still be screening a great selection of films, with the cheapest prices around, for audiences who aren’t afraid to scream, cry, or laugh – all made possible by a dedicated committee of volunteers.

There will be a couple of changes coming too, which we’ll be announcing over the coming weeks. The first of these changes that we’re thrilled to tell you about now is that, from 2019 onwards, the ANU Film Group will be screening films ALL YEAR ROUND. No more three month screening breaks between November and February!

We look forward to bringing you more screenings, more movies and more of all that you love about Australia’s largest film society – and we hope you’ll come along with us to our new home when we return in February 2019!

Another change – although one that we are a little less excited about – is that ANU Film Group membership prices will be increasing for the first time in six years. This is the result of rising film hire, freight and running costs, and is unfortunately necessary to enable us to continue providing the best moviegoing experience in Canberra for many more years to come.

From 2019 onwards, Annual memberships will cost $90 for a full year’s worth of screenings. We are also in the process of reconfiguring our semester membership structure, and those will be made available for purchase early next year.

As a token of our appreciation to our loyal and long-time members for their ongoing support, we are offering 2019 Annual memberships for pre-purchase at the current price of $70 from now until the end of the year.

To join up now for 2019, simply head to www.anufg.org.au/join and complete the online form. Payment can be made via direct deposit (no surcharge) or credit card/PayPal ($2 surcharge per membership applies). Upon successful receipt of payment, a digital membership certificate will then be emailed to the nominated email address within 3–5 business days.

ANUFG memberships make great Christmas presents too, and you can join up for your friends, family and loved ones to give them a gift that keeps giving. All you have to do is complete the online form with the intended recipient’s details to purchase a membership for 2019 on their behalf.

Regardless of who you’re buying it for, Annual memberships for 2019 will only be discounted to $70 until December 31, 2018 – so get in quick!

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WHAT’S ON THIS WEEK
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We’ve packed our final few weeks of screenings for 2018 with some big films, and this week is no exception with an awards contender, a dose of Aussie nostalgia, a new live-action Winnie the Pooh adventure, and the return of Michael Myers.

In FIRST MAN, take a look at the life of astronaut Neil Armstrong (Ryan Gosling) and the lengthy and perilous space mission – along with the many failures and sacrifices – that led him to become the first man in history to walk on the moon on July 20, 1969. Directed by Damien Chazelle.

Then, in HALLOWEEN (at approx. 10 PM), it's been 40 years since Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) survived a vicious attack from crazed killer Michael Myers. But when Myers escapes from prison, Laurie now faces a showdown with the masked madman – except this time, she's ready for him.

• SAT 24 NOV @ **5 PM**: CHRISTOPHER ROBIN (G, 104 min)

Christopher Robin (Ewan McGregor) is now a grown-up family man who has become lost in the responsibilities of being an adult. Sensing that he needs their help, Winnie the Pooh and his other childhood friends pay him a visit to help him rediscover the joys of life.

• SAT 24 NOV @ **7 PM**: LADIES IN BLACK (PG, 109 min)

In 1959 Sydney, a schoolgirl (Angourie Rice) takes a summer job at a prestigious department store where her fellow saleswomen open her eyes to a fast-changing world beyond her sheltered existence. Directed by Bruce Beresford, and starring Julia Ormond, Rachael Taylor and Ryan Corr.

** Note: this film replaces the originally scheduled MOWGLI due to a distributor change **

• SUN 25 NOV @ **6 PM**: COOMBS THEATRE FAREWELL EVENT

Join us in saying goodbye to our beloved home for the past 50 years – the Coombs Theatre – before we take up residence in a brand new cinema within the ANU's Kambri precinct in 2019.

Only two weeks left until the end of screenings for 2018 – and our time in the Coombs Theatre!

Don’t forget that our Coombs Farewell Event will be taking place next Sunday from 6 PM, so be sure to come along and join us in raising a glass to the Coombs Theatre for the very last time. For more information, click HERE.

This week, check out the hit 2018 remake of A STAR IS BORN with Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga, a star-studded 60s-set mystery-thriller, the return of The Predator, and a chronicle of The Smiths frontman Morrissey’s early days. See you there!

In A STAR IS BORN, seasoned musician Jackson Maine (Bradley Cooper) falls in love with struggling artist Ally (Lady Gaga). But as Ally's career takes off, and Jackson finds himself fighting an ongoing battle with his own demons, the personal side of their relationship begins to break down.

Then, in ENGLAND IS MINE (at approx. 10 PM), discover the early days of British singer-songwriter Morrissey and his early life in 1970s Manchester before he went on to become the lead singer of seminal alternative rock band The Smiths.

Over the course of one fateful night in 1969, seven strangers with secrets meet by chance at the El Royale, a rundown hotel with a dark past where their true colours and intentions gradually begin to reveal themselves. Starring Jeff Bridges, Jon Hamm, Dakota Johnson and Chris Hemsworth.

Then, in THE PREDATOR (at approx. 9:30 PM), when a young boy accidentally triggers the return of the universe’s most lethal hunters to Earth, only a ragtag crew of ex-soldiers and a disgruntled scientist can prevent the end of the human race. Directed by Shane Black.

** 'NO GUESTS' SCREENINGS THIS WEEK: A STAR IS BORN, BAD TIMES AT THE EL ROYALE **

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WIN TICKETS TO ‘LEAN ON PETE’ – IN CINEMAS NOVEMBER 29
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Thanks to our friends at Transmission Films, we have tickets to give away to LEAN ON PETE, the award-winning new drama from acclaimed British director Andrew Haigh (45 YEARS, WEEKEND).

The film tells the story of fifteen-year-old Charley, the son of a single father struggling to stay afloat. Hoping for a new start they move to Portland, Oregon, where Charley takes on a summer job with a washed-up horse trainer, and soon finds himself befriends an aging racehorse named Lean on Pete.

You can check out the trailer for the film starring Charlie Plummer, Steve Buscemi, Chloë Sevigny and Travis Fimmel by clicking HERE.

To go into the running to win 1 of 10 double passes to see the film in cinemas, all you have to do is email us at info@anufg.org.au with your name, your membership number (located under the barcode on your card) and tell us the name of the horse that Charley befriends in the film.

Entries close on Thursday 22 November, with winners to be notified via email and prizes to be collected at ANUFG screenings. But please note that there will only be a few opportunities next week to collect your prize if you win.

If you picked up a copy of the Canberra Times today, you might have seen a little article (on page 2!) about the ANU Film Group and our 50 years in the Coombs Theatre. Alternatively, you can check out the article online by CLICKING HERE.

We’re very proud of our time at Coombs and intend on fully celebrating it at our farewell event on November 25. If you have any photos, videos or memories of your time at the Coombs Theatre that you’d like to share with us, please send it through to info@anufg.org.au. We’re putting together a slideshow to run on screen at the event and we’d love to have some submissions from our members!

(Please note that the article makes reference to LADIES IN BLACK screening as part of the farewell event on November 25. It will actually be screening on November 24 – the farewell event does not include a film screening.)

As screenings wind down for the year, we’re dropping the price of our Semester Two 2018 memberships from $40 to just $20!

That’s only $5 more than a Weekly membership, so it’s perfect if you’re not already a member and would come along to any of our screenings between now and November 25. There’s still plenty more to see, including critically acclaimed films like A STAR IS BORN, FIRST MAN and LADIES IN BLACK.

Discounted Semester Two memberships are available online now (www.anufg.org.au/join) or in person at any screening.

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WHAT’S ON THIS WEEK
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Only three weeks of screenings left to go for the year! This week, you can catch Rowan Atkinson’s return as Johnny English, head back to night school, and check out an acclaimed French drama about the AIDS epidemic in the 90s.

• FRI 9 NOV @ 7:30 PM: BPM (BEATS PER MINUTE) (MA, 143 min)

In the early 1990s, a young man joins an advocacy group that takes increasingly radical action to force the government and pharmaceutical companies to recognise the worsening AIDS epidemic in the French community. Winner of six César Awards, including Best Film.

When the identities of their undercover agents are revealed, the British Secret Service must call bumbling spy Johnny English (Rowan Atkinson) out of retirement to track down a dangerous hacker in this third instalment in the spy comedy series.

Then, in NIGHT SCHOOL (at approx. 8:30 PM), a group of adult misfits and high school drops outs are forced to attend night school to finally earn their high school diplomas in order to get their lives back on track. Starring Kevin Hart and Tiffany Haddish.

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WHAT’S ON THIS WEEK
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To kick off the month of November at the ANU Film Group, Denzel Washington stars in his first-ever sequel, a 1973 Blaxploitation film gets a remake, Yetis sing and dance, and Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively get embroiled in a twisty mystery.

In THE EQUALIZER 2, when one of his friends is murdered, Robert McCall (Denzel Washington) return to his old ways to seek out and punish the perpetrators by delivering his special brand of vigilante justice.

Then, in SUPERFLY (at approx. 9:30 PM), a young African-American drug dealer decides to get out of the business, but finds leaving a life of crime behind more difficult than he imagined in this remake of the 1972 Blaxploitation crime film.

• SAT 3 NOV @ **5 PM**: SMALLFOOT (G, 96 min)

A Yeti is convinced that the elusive creature known as the ‘Smallfoot’ really exists and sets out against the wishes of his community to prove his theories correct in this animated musical comedy featuring the voices of Channing Tatum, James Corden, Zendaya and Danny DeVito.

• SAT 3 NOV @ **7 PM**: A SIMPLE FAVOUR (M, 117 min)

A single mother (Anna Kendrick) befriends a mysterious upper-class woman (Blake Lively), and takes it upon herself to investigate when her new best friend suddenly disappears from their small town. Directed by Paul Feig.

Thanks to our friends at Transmission Films, we have tickets to give away to SUSPIRIA, the terrifying new remake of the 1977 cult horror classic.

The unsettling new film from director Luca Guadagnino (CALL ME BY YOUR NAME) follows a young American dancer (Dakota Johnson) in 1970s Berlin as she joins a world-renowned dance company – only to discover its darkest secrets and a hidden world of unimaginable nightmares.

To go into the running to win 1 of 10 double passes to see the film in cinemas, all you have to do is email us at info@anufg.org.au with your name, your membership number (located under the barcode on your card) and tell us who directed the original 1977 version of SUSPIRIA.

Entries close on Thursday 8 November, with winners to be notified via email and prizes to be collected at ANUFG screenings.

October 2018

It’s hard to believe that’s there only one month left until the end of screenings for 2018 – and the end of our time in the Coombs Theatre!

In case you haven’t heard, the ANU Film Group will be moving to a new purpose-built home in 2019. If you haven’t already done so, you can read more about this in an FAQ we posted back in April.

We’re working hard to have more new information to share with you about the new venue, but in the meantime, we’re now taking suggestions for films you’d like to see on our Semester One 2019 programme!

Let us know what new releases, up-and-comers or classic favourites you’d like to see at the ANU Film Group next year by filling out a suggestion form at www.anufg.org.au/suggestions. We encourage you to submit your suggestions online, but if you wish to fill out a printed form, these are also available on request at any screening.

And be sure to mark your calendars for our Coombs Theatre Farewell event on SUNDAY 25 NOVEMBER where we’ll be saying goodbye to our home for the past 50 years. More details to be announced next week!

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WHAT’S ON THIS WEEK
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This week, check out a very special preview screening of WOMAN AT WAR, Iceland’s submission for next year’s Best Foreign Language Oscar at 1:45 PM on Saturday, courtesy of Hi-Gloss Entertainment.

Plus, Mark Wahlberg back in action, the latest film from the director of SAW, the high school years of a serial killer, a offbeat Thai road trip movie, and the UK’s acclaimed submission for – you guessed it – the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar in 2019.

• THU 25 OCT @ 7:30 PM: MILE 22 (MA, 94 min)

An elite team of American operatives are tasked with smuggling an Indonesian police officer with sensitive information out of the country, amidst political turmoil and hidden agendas. Starring Mark Wahlberg, Iko Uwais and John Malkovich.

In UPGRADE, after his wife is murdered and he is paralysed in a brutal mugging, a man is offered an experimental spinal implant that will allow him to exact violent revenge upon his attackers. Directed by Leigh Whannell (SAW).

Then, in MY FRIEND DAHMER (at approx. 9:15 PM), take a haunting look at the early life of Jeffrey Dahmer, a shy high schooler in the 1970s whose troubled upbringing leads him to become one of the world’s most notorious serial killers.

• SAT 27 OCT @ **1:45 PM**: WOMAN AT WAR (101 min)

An Icelandic choir conductor leads a secret double life as an environmental activist. But when she discovers that her dream to adopt a child is about to be realised, she must choose between being a saviour or becoming a mother.

** Preview screening presented by Hi-Gloss Entertainment and the Australian Film Societies Federation **

In POP AYE, a man bumps into a circus elephant from his past on the streets of Bangkok, and together they embark on a charming and unforgettable journey across Thailand in search of the farm where they grew up together.

Then, in I AM NOT A WITCH (at approx. 8:45 PM) an eight-year-old girl in Zambia is accused of witchcraft and exiled by her village to a camp in the desert, where she must decide her future in this unique, award-winning British film.

We regret to inform you that our last scheduled film of the semester, MOWGLI, is no longer available for us to screen, as it was recently acquired by Netflix for release in 2019. In its place on Saturday 24 November, we will instead be screening director Bruce Beresford’s latest film, Australian comedy-drama LADIES IN BLACK.

Set in 1959 Sydney, the film follows a schoolgirl (Angourie Rice) who takes a summer job at a prestigious department store where her fellow saleswomen open her eyes to a fast-changing world beyond her sheltered existence. Also starring Julia Ormond, Rachael Taylor, Ryan Corr and Shane Jacobson, the film is a feel-good throwback to a bygone era – and the perfect dose of nostalgia for what is likely to be the ANU Film Group’s final screening in the Coombs Theatre.

LADIES IN BLACK will screen on Saturday 24 November at 7 PM, and will be a ‘No Guests’ screening. CHRISTOPHER ROBIN will also be screening on the same day at 5 PM as originally scheduled.

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WHAT’S ON THIS WEEK
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If there’s ever been a week of screenings that highlights two extreme ends of the filmgoing spectrum, this might be it…

On one hand, we have acclaimed and thought-provoking films from Switzerland, France and Finland. And then there’s an Australian alien invasion, murderous puppets, and Jason Statham versus a giant shark. What more could you want?!

• WED 17 OCT @ 7:30 PM: THE DIVINE ORDER (M, 97 min)

By the late 1960s, the people of Switzerland have been relatively untouched by the social upheaval occurring around the world. But a young mother from a rural village changes everything when she begins a historic fight for women’s suffrage.

** Presented in partnership with the Embassy of Switzerland **

• THU 18 OCT @ 7:30 PM: OCCUPATION (M, 119 min)

After their small Australian country town is annihilated by an alien attack, a group of civilians discover that they are among Earth’s last remaining survivors and form an army to fight back against their extra-terrestrial occupiers.

In a world where puppets and humans co-exists, a puppet private eye and his partner (Melissa McCarthy) find themselves hot on the trail of the serial killer targeting cast members of a TV show from the 1990s. Not suitable for children!

Then, in THE MEG (at approx. 9 PM), a rescue diver (Jason Statham) is recruited to save the crew of a deep-sea submersible after they are trapped at the bottom of the ocean by a massive prehistoric shark previously believed to be extinct.

• SAT 20 OCT @ **7 PM**: TWO IS A FAMILY (M, 117 min) + THE OTHER SIDE OF HOPE (M, 100 min)

In French comedy-drama TWO IS A FAMILY, a man’s old flame leaves a child on his doorstep, claiming that the infant is his. Years later, the man and his daughter have become inseparable – until her mother returns and demands custody.

Then, in Finnish director Aki Kaurismäki’s latest film, THE OTHER SIDE OF HOPE (at approx. 9 PM), a Syrian refugee arrives in Helsinki seeking asylum but instead forms an unlikely friendship with a travelling salesman-turned-entrepreneur.

Thanks to Transmission Films, we have tickets to give away to BEAUTIFUL BOY, the powerful new drama starring Steve Carell and Timothée Chalamet.

BEAUTIFUL BOY follows a desperate father (Carell) who will do whatever he can to keep his family together, as his son (Chalamet) struggles with a drug addiction to that threatens to destroy him. A deeply moving portrait of unwavering love in the face of adversity, the film chronicles a family’s heartbreaking experience of addiction, relapse, and recovery over many years.

To go into the running to win 1 of 10 double passes to see the film in cinemas, all you have to do is email us at info@anufg.org.au with your name, your membership number (located under the barcode on your card) and tell us the title of one film from our Semester Two 2018 programme starring Steve Carell.

Entries close on Wednesday 24 October, with winners to be notified via email and prizes to be collected at ANUFG screenings.